welch



no Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

. J. F. WELOH.

I RLANING MAGHINE. No. 404,138. Patented May 28, 1889.

p/ Ao N. PETERS. Fhmolilbngnpher, Waihiflgian. D.C.

(No Model.)

2 Sheets- Sheet 2.

J. F. WELGH.

PLANING MACHINE.

Patented May 28, 1889.

N, PEKERS, mnwumn n her. Wanhmgtom n.c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES F. WELOH, OF BROOKLYN, NEWV YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE GLEN COVE MACHINE COMPANY, (LIMI'IED,) OF SAME PLACE.

PLANlNG-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 404,138, dated. May 28, 1889.

Application filed November 1'7, 1888. Serial No. 291,154. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JAMES F. WELoH, of

Brooklyn, (Green Point,) in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Planing-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

I will describe in detail a planing-machine embodying my improvement, and then point out the novel features in claims.

Y In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a plan or top view of a planing-machine embodyingmy improvement. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section thereof, taken on the plane of the line 50 m, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a transverse section thereof, taken on the plane of the line y y, Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken on the line b b, Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is another horizontal section taken on the line 9 g, Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section taken on the line h h, Fig. 1.

Similar letters of reference designate corre sponding parts in all the figures.

I have only illustrated such parts of a planing-machine as are essential to an understanding of my invention, the feeding mechanism for imparting the initial feed to the lumber being omitted. Figs. 3, 4, 5, and (Shave been broken away in certain parts to save space.

The object of my invention is to provide a machine for tonguing and grooving a single board or a multiplicity of boards at one and the same time, and the machine is so constructed as to provide for adjustment in its various parts, so that the presser-rollers and the cutter-heads may be readily and uniformly adjusted to accommodate boards of different widths and thicknesses.

The boards are fed into this machine edgewise-that is to say, their sides will be presented horizontally and the tonguing and grooving will be done upon the upper and lower edges of the boards.

In order to provide for the feeding of a number of boards simultaneously and at uniform rates of speed, I provide presser-rollers, which constitute at the same time feedingrollers B B These presser and feeding rollers are arranged in pairs. I have shown five of such pairs of presser and feed rollers. They are arranged upon the upper portions I have shown these presser and feed rollers arranged in two rows, and they are in ameas urezigzag. By arranging them 111 two rows the width of the machine is materially decreased, and by zigzagging them boards passed through by the rollers B will pass through or between the rollers B without contacting with the latter, and vice versa. The feed-rollers in the first row, or B, therefore constitute pairs co-operating together, and those of the second row, or B, constitute other pairs co -operating together. One of the feed-rollers of each pair in the example of my improvement shown is capable of yielding horizontally, so asto admit without other adjustment of the rollers of the passage between them of boards of difierent thicknesses or boards varying in thickness.

The arrangement which. I consider advantageous for causing the yielding of certain of the rollers is shown more clearly in Fig. 4.

O designates journal-boxes for certain of the roller-spindles. These journal-boxes are supported upon horizontally-extending supports 0. The journal-boxes O are loosely mounted upon their supports a, and are capable of be-' ing moved to and fro upon such supports. In the arrangement of presser and feed rollers which I have shown the alternate journalboxes 0 of the two rows are made thus adjustable. In other words, a line drawn between the adjustable journal-boxes of the two rows would be a zigzag line. Upon each of the journal-boxes C is formed or secured a box, D. Each of these boxes is hollow. Through these hollow boxes extends horizontally across the machine a shaft, D. Upon this shaft are screw-threaded portions d, which engage screw-threaded nuts D within the hollow boxes D; also arranged within the hollow boxes D, and surrounding the shaft D, are elastic washers (1 preferably of india-rubber. The sides of the boxes D are closed except sufficiently to admit the passage of the shaft D. The nuts D and the washers cannot, therefore, move out of the boxes. When the movable rollers are pressed to one side by boards passing between them and the stationary rollers, they cause a sliding movement of their journal-boxes, whereby the washers d are compressed between the ends of the boxes D and the nuts D There is, therefore, always a yielding pressure exerted by the presser and feed rollers upon the boards, so as to accommodate varying thicknesses in the boards.

By rotating the shaft D all of the movable rollers B B may be simultaneously adjusted toward one side of the machine or the other, the screw-threaded portions on the shaft engaging the nuts D for this purpose. I have shown a hand-wheel, (1 upon the shaft D outside the frame of the machine, whereby it may be rotated. Rotary motion is transmitted to the rollers 13 B by means of a wormshaft, B engaging worm-wheels B upon the lower ends of the spindles 1). Motion may be transmitted to the shaft B by a belt passing over a pulley, B or in any other suitable manner. After leaving the rollers B B the boards are moved simultaneously forward ,and are guided between pairs of cutter-heads, whereby they are tongued and grooved. The cutter-heads E operate upon the upper edges of the boards and the cutter-head E upon the lower edges thereof. These cutter-heads rotate in unison, but in opposite direct-ions, certain of the cutter-heads being arranged directly above certain of the other cut-terheads.

. I designate the upper cutter-heads the upper set and the lower the lower set. The upper set is arranged upon the horizontally-extending shaft F and rigidly secured thereto, so as to rotate therewith. The lower set is arranged upon a similarly-extending shaft, F. There may, however, be but one upper and one lower cutter-head.

The shaft F, together with the upper set of the cutter-heads, is both vertically and horizontally adjustable. Such shaft is journaled in journal-boxes e near its ends, which jourmal-boxes are mounted in frames f. Engaging with these frames are downwardly-extending screws f, upon the lower ends of which are beveled gear-wheels f Engaging the beveled gear-Wheels f are other gears, f mounted upon a horizontally-extendin g shaft, f WVhen the shaft f is rotated, the screws f will be rotated to cause the raising or lowering of the frames f, according to the directions in which theshaft shall be rotated. By this means the shaft F, together with the upper set of cutter-heads, may be uniformly and simultaneously raised and lowered.

In order to move the upper set of cutterheads uniformly and simultaneously from side to side of the machine, I cause the movement of the frame f, bearing the shaft F, this frame being mounted in suitable guideways upon the main frame of the machine.

I have shown for accomplishing such move ment a screw, g, engaging a tapped hole in the main frame, and also a slot in a projection, g, upon one of the frames f. It will be readily seen that by rotating this screw 9 the shaft F and the upper set of cutter-heads may be moved from side to side. The shaft, after having been moved, is secured in position by'means of bolts g passing through slots 9 in the frames f and engaging portions of the main frame' The lower shaft, F, carrying the lower set of cutter-heads, is, as shown, adjustable from side to side of the machine only. Its mode of adjustment may be in all respects similar to that of the shaft F, just described, being accomplished by means of a screw, g causing the movement of the journal-boxes 9 in which said shaft F is mounted. Rotary motion may be imparted to the shafts F F by means of a belt or belts passing over pulleys F on said shafts.

Co-operating with the upper set of cutterheads are pressers and chip-breakers G,which may be of the usual or any desired construction and mounted loosely upon a horizontally-extending shaft, G.

The boards in passing between the upper and lower cutter-heads pass between guides G3 G. The guides G are stationary. The guides G", on the contrary, consist of springfingers, which always bear with a yielding pressure against the side of the board with which they contact.- These resilient guides are arranged upon the upper ends of pins or studs h extending vertically and loosely through suitable apertures in a portion, H, of the frame of the machine. The resilient guides are adjustably secured upon the pins or studs h by means of set screws 2'. The pins or studs are vertically adjustable in the portion H of the frame, and may be secured in any desired position by means of set-screws j. By making these guides resilient means are provided for accommodating various thicknesses in the boards, and by making them both vertically and rotatably adjustable means are provided for bringing them always at or near the out upon the boards being operated upon, and also for accommodating different thicknesses of boards. More than one of the guides G may be used for each board, if desired. After leaving the cutters the upper edges of the boards, in the example shown, are received by guides J, which, if the tongue of the boards is made upon the upper edge, will be provided with grooves for receiving said tongues, and, if the groove of the boards is made upon the upper edge, willbe provided with tongues Z, as shown, extending into the grooves of the boards. 7

\Vhat I claimas my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination of pairs of vertically.- extending presser and feed rollers arranged in rows and zigzagged, and horizontally-arranged cutter-heads arranged in pairs and one above another, substantially as specified.

2. The combination, with pairs of verticallyextending presser and feed rollers arranged in rows and zigzagged, of journal-boxes for the spindles of said rollers, boxes on said spindles on said rollers, provided with nuts, journal-boxes, nuts Within said boxes, a screwand a screw-threaded shaft extending horizonshaft engaging all said nuts for adjusting the tally across the machine and engaging all said rollers in unison, and springs operating on said 5 nuts, which shaft when rotated will adjust nuts to admit of the yielding of the presser- I 5 all the rollers in unison, substantially as rollers, substantially as specified.

specified. JAMES F. WELCH.

3. The combination, with pairs of vertically- Witnesses: extending presser and feed rollers arranged FREDK. HAYNES, 10 in rows and zigzagged, of journal-boxes for ARTHUR H. GAMBLIN. 

